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Advantages of the Acer Swift X (2023)
- Very good for engineering and design
- Very good for content creation
- Very good overall display quality
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Air (2020)
- Best in class overall build quality
- Excellent battery life
- Best in class speakers
- Best in class keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.9
6.2
5.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.9/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
10.0/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both only fair for gaming and AI, though the Acer Swift X (2023) is somewhat better.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
8.0
7.3
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.0/10
5.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Acer Swift X (2023) is very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good.
The Acer Swift X (2023) is suited for engineering and design due to its high-performance Intel i5 CPU, dedicated Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU, and ample RAM, making it capable of handling demanding tasks, complemented by a high-resolution IPS screen that exhibits accurate colors. The Apple MacBook Air (2020), on the other hand, while slightly less powerful in terms of raw CPU and GPU capabilities compared to the Acer, makes up for it with excellent portability, a high-quality keyboard, and superior speaker quality, also offering a high-resolution IPS screen in a fanless design that operates silently.
Screen Quality
8.0
7.5
14.5in
SIZE
13.3in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
390.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
395.0 nits
The Acer Swift X has a better screen than the Apple MacBook Air for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Acer Swift X excels in displaying vivid colors and sharp images due to its high resolution and brightness, making it excellent for general use and detailed engineering work where color accuracy matters. The MacBook Air also provides a quality viewing experience with good resolution and brightness, but it is not as vibrant for color-intensive engineering tasks. However, both laptops have screens with lower refresh rates, which means that fast-paced visuals required in gaming and 3D modeling might not appear as smooth, resulting in a less optimal experience for these specific applications.
Battery
10.0 Hours
15.0 Hours
The Acer Swift X has 10 hours of battery life. The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Very Good
Very Good
14.5in
SIZE
13.3in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
2.8 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Acer Swift X (2023) both have very good portability, though the Apple MacBook Air (2020) has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.6
10.0
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has best in class build quality, while the Acer Swift X (2023) has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,100
$1,000
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
The Acer Swift X (2023) has a price of $1,100 and the Apple MacBook Air (2020) costs $1,000.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.9
7.6
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
390.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
395.0 nits
10.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
15.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
8.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.9/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both good for general use.
The Acer Swift X, with an Intel i5 CPU and 16GB of RAM, offers solid performance for general use and has a larger screen size and higher GPU capability than the MacBook Air, which is useful for applications that benefit from a dedicated graphics card; however, the MacBook Air's Apple M1 chip and 8GB of RAM balance power efficiency with performance, leading to longer battery life and outstanding build quality that help make it highly portable and suitable for daily tasks. Both laptops have high-quality IPS screens with similar resolution and color coverage, ensuring sharp and color-accurate displays, but the MacBook Air is lighter and has a fanless design for silent operation, whereas the Swift X might handle multitasking and more demanding programs better due to superior cooling but with more operational noise.
Content Creation
8.0
7.8
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.0/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Acer Swift X (2023) to be very good for content creation, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.9
7.7
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.0/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
The Acer Swift X (2023) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both good for software development.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
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How the Acer Swift X (2023) and the Apple MacBook Air (2020) compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Swift X (2023) | Apple MacBook Air (2020) |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,100 | $1,000 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | May 1, 2023 | November 1, 2020 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 12.7'' x 9'' x 0.7'' | 12'' x 8.4'' x 0.63'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.31 lbs | 2.8 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 12.7" | 11.97" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9" | 8.36" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i5-13500H | Apple M1 | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 10 Hours | 15 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 76 Wh | 49.9 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 14.5" | 13.3" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2560 x 1600 | 2560 x 1600 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 120Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 390 nits | 395 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.6/10 | 10/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 8.3/10 | 9/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | Yes | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 8/10 | 10/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8/10 | 9.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 8/10 | 9.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 0 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 3 | |
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Acer Swift X (2023)
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sebastian Jentsch | March 2022
"The Swift X is an Acer for entry-level gaming. With the entry-level graphics chip, our Acer not only beats every single current AMD and Intel iGPU, but also Intel's dGPU Iris Xe Max. However, despite being a GDDR6 version, the GTX does not match the expectations set by its own counterparts from our database. This may be a result of the single fan, which only produces moderate noise levels under load. The performance level of the thin and light 1.4 kg (~3.09 lbs) 14-inch laptop is impressive nonetheless."
Apple MacBook Air (2020)
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | July 2022
"The Apple MacBook Air M2 Entry is a very good, but too expensive daily MacBook. The new MacBook Air M2 is undoubtedly once again a very good mobile companion, but we are still a little bit disappointed on a very high level, which is definitely connected with the increased price point. The new chassis is extremely slim and the front edge is no problem during typing, but the bezels are pretty wide for a modern device and in addition with the vertical space required for the notch, the new Air has larger footprint than some Windows rivals."
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About Acer
Acer is a prominent Taiwanese electronics brand which makes a wide range of laptops, with multiple product lines catering to personal use, gaming, and business use. They are renowned for having exceptional value for money, as they frequently offer good specifications at a lower price than other manufacturers.
About Apple
Apple, an American technology company, is one of the world’s largest company in terms of market capitalization. Their MacBook laptops feature a slim, minimalistic design, class-leading battery life, and premium display and speaker quality. In 2020 Apple switched from using Intel processors to their own silicon chips which have excellent performance and efficiency. The macOS operating system is the second most widely used OS, after Windows.
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Why trust us
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
169,995
Recommendations made
36,833
Consumer hours saved
About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.
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